The value of plasma fibrinogen estimations in cattle: A comparison with total leucocyte and neutrophil counts

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Abstract
Extract Fibrinogen is one of the major protein constituents of blood plasma. It has the largest molecular weight of the plasma proteins (approximately 330 000), is produced solely in the liver, and is classed as a globulin (Putnam, 1960 Putnam, F. W. 1960. The Plasma Proteins. II: Biosynthesis, Metabolism, Alterations in Disease, New York and London: Academic Press. [Google Scholar] ; Adelson, 1968 Adelson, E. 1968. “Fibrinogen Metabolism”. In Fibrinogen, Edited by: Laki, K. 225–240. New York: Dekker. In [Google Scholar] ). The main function of fibrinogen is its role in the clotting of blood(see Laki, 1968 Laki, K. 1968. Fibrinogen, New York: Dekker. In [Google Scholar] ), but it has been shown that increased plasma levels can occur in inflammatory states, not only when clinical disease, is obvious, but also when a subclinical condition exists (Kaneko and Smith, 1967 Kaneko, J. J. and Smith, Rachel . 1967. The estimation of plasma fibrinogen and its clinical significance in the dog. Calif. Vet., 21(8): 21–24. [Google Scholar] ; Schalm, 1970a Schalm, O. W. 1970a. Plasma protein: fibrinogen ratios in disease in the dog and horse — Part II. Calif. Vet., 24(4): 19–22. [Google Scholar] , b Schalm, O. W. 1970b. Plasma protein: fibrinogen ratios in routine clinical material from cats, dogs, horses and cattle — Part III. Calif. vet., 24(6): 6–6. 9–10 [Google Scholar] ; Schalm et al., 1970 Schalm, O. W. , Smith, Rachel and Kaneko, J. J. 1970. Plasma protein: fibrinogen ratios in dogs, cattle and horses. Par 1. Influence of age on normal values and explanation of use in disease. Calif. Vet., 24(2): 9–11. [Google Scholar] : McSherry et al., 1970 McSherry, B. J. , Horney, F. D. and deGroot, J. J. 1970. Plasma fibrinogen levels in normal and sick cows. Can. f. comp. Med., 34: 191–197. [Google Scholar] ). The recent development of a quick and simple technique for its estimation has now made it possible for fibrinogen levels to be measured as part of the routine haemogram (Kaneko and Smith, 1967 Kaneko, J. J. and Smith, Rachel . 1967. The estimation of plasma fibrinogen and its clinical significance in the dog. Calif. Vet., 21(8): 21–24. [Google Scholar] ).